Mixtape Mondays, Part Few: Murlo + The Heatwave

Words by Jesse Serwer—

On this special bonus edition of Mixtape Mondays—check out the premiere of Major Lazer Presents Chronixx and Walshy Fire—Start A Fire, in today’s first installment—we take a journey to the fringes of dancehall with Murlo and get a 101 on adultery from the UK’s most salacious sound system, The Heatwave. Selector!

Murlo, Street Trash: British DJ, beatmaker and “producer of all things bashy, funky and soca” Murlo teamed with Japan’s DIS MAG for his latest mix, an all-instrumental set showcasing some of the most creative and experimental dancehall riddims of the last few years. Starting off with the producer’s own creation “Water Lily,” the mix then moves to Leftside’s orchestral, hip-hop-influenced Hold Me Tight riddim and Don Corleon’s Peenie Wallie, before going back into some more Murlo instrumentals. Busy Signal’s “Tic Toc” instrumental, Dre Skull’s Loudspeaker riddim, and even Lenky Marsden’s now decade-old (but still very fresh sounding) Diwali riddim all show up as well. Definitely a strong mix for fans of creative dancehall production, and there’s even a video from Japanese visual artist Takeshi Murata, which you can see here. The mix is downloadable from that link, or right here:

The Heatwave, Guide to Adultery: As anyone who listens to a lot of dancehall knows, adultery—or bun, as they call it in Jamaica—is a most popular topic for lyricists in the genre. Top U.K. sound The Heatwave have seized on this for a most entertaining mixtape, dedicated to the joys and pain of cheating. In addition to bun-themed bashment from Vybz Kartel (of course), Lady Saw (naturally), Cham, Mavado, Mr. Lexx as well as an in-studio visit from U.K. deejay Lady Chann, who stops by to dish out wisdom and solve some scandalous love dilemmas before offering a preview of her new mixtape. Stream below, and download here.